Through Their Eyes: An Analysis of Misrepresentation in Popular Lesbian Television Narratives

The purpose of this thesis is to explore lesbian television narratives that shape popular discourse. My goal is to find and expose the implications of monolithic expressions of queerness through both queer and heteronormative presenting television narratives. This exploration of the queer narrative voice addresses three distinct movements of cultural production: the proclaimed self-represented queer television narrative, the connotatively queer heterocentric television narrative, and the queer narrative produced in fan-based literature. For concision, I focus on the popular television dramas The L Word and Rizzoli & Isles, as well as the fan works produced for the latter. Through the lens of these narratives, I explore the policing of lesbian cultural expression through narrative voice and the cultural implications of overarchingly monolithic narratives. Using a combination of queer, feminist, and glitch theories I discuss the multi-faceted systems of oppression that dictate queer narratives in mass media. Acknowledging Michel Foucault’s concept of heterotopia, the following analysis establishes narrative space as a constantly contested landscape, socially constructed by the privileged producer. With the digital humanities concept of cultural glitch, I explore the solicitous Hollywood tactic of queerbaiting television narratives and the benefits of self-representation through fan production. Such exploration of the policed narrative leads to my analysis of the social implication of distorting representations of queer life and actionable resolutions for the queer consumer

Articulating the new normal(s) : mental disability, medical discourse, and rhetorical action.

“Articulating the New Normal(s): Mental Disability, Medical Discourse, and Rhetorical Action” studies the writing of people diagnosed with autism and post- traumatic stress disorder within online discussion boards related to mental health and outlines their unique rhetorical strategies for interacting with biomedical ideologies of psychiatry and activist discourses. The opening chapter situates this dissertation in relation to previous scholarship in Rhetoric, Disability Studies, and other fields. I also provide a summary of the set of mixed methods I use to gather and analyze my data, including rhetorical analysis, corpus analysis, and qualitative interviews. In Chapter 2, “Medical Terminology and Discourse Features of Online Discussions of Mental Health,” I explore the ways in which medical discourse appears in discussions of mental disability through medical terms that writers and speakers use when discussing a diagnosis. Using methods borrowed from linguistics, I demonstrate that the writers in my study make different linguistic choices than the general public, and that the most prominent differences are related to the social construction of mental health and medicine. In Chapter 3, “Inhabiting Biological Primacy with Chiasmic Rhetoric in Mental Health Forums,” I describe and analyze a variety of common topics in online conversations that connect mental health and expert knowledge of the brain. I argue that this connection of mental experience and brain science constitutes a chiasmic rhetoric. The writers foregrounded in this chapter acknowledge and accept much of the claims of medicine and neuroscience regarding the brain but, uniquely, work to divide that knowledge from the path of normativity and optimization. Chapter 4, “Classified Conversations: Psychiatry and Technical Communication in Online Spaces,” examines the practices of participants in online mental health discussion forums conversations as they interpret technical documents. I detail four salient forms of the manipulation of medical discourse in online communities. At the close of this chapter, I explain how these insights can inform academic study of writing in mental health contexts and transform the content and application of medical and technical texts. In Chapter 5, “Re-Forming Mental Health: Rhetorical Innovation and the Language of Advocacy,” I summarize and synthesize the core arguments of earlier chapters, with an extended caveat regarding the ethical dilemmas of this study. Finally, I offer a set of practical recommendations for different communities with which my research has been conversant, the fields of Rhetoric and Rhetoric of Health and Medicine, Disability Studies, and activism related to mental disabilities

Accessibility at Film Festivals: Guidelines for Inclusive Subtitling

In today's media-dominated world, the imperative for accessibility has never been greater, and ensuring that audiovisual experiences cater to individuals with sensory disabilities has become a pressing concern. One of the key initiatives in this endeavour is inclusive subtitling (IS), a practice rooted in the broader contexts of subtitling for the deaf and hard of hearing (SDH/CC), audiovisual translation studies (AVTS), media accessibility studies (MAS), and the evolving field of Deaf studies (DS). This study aims to offer a comprehensive exploration of how inclusive subtitling contributes to fostering accessible and inclusive audiovisual experiences, with a particular focus on its implications within the unique environment of film festivals. To gain a holistic perspective of inclusive subtitling, it is essential to examine its lineage in relation to analogous practices, which is the focus of the first chapter. Inclusive subtitling is an extension of SDH/CC, designed for individuals with hearing impairments, and SDH/CC, in turn, is a nuanced variation of traditional subtitling extensively explored within the realm of AVTS. To encapsulate the diverse techniques and modalities aimed at making audiovisual content universally accessible, the study recognises the term "Audiovisual Accessibility" (AVA). The second chapter explores the interconnection of accessibility studies (AS), AVTS, and MAS, highlighting their symbiotic relationship and their role in framing inclusive subtitles within these fields. These interconnections are pivotal in shaping a framework for the practice of inclusive subtitling, enabling a comprehensive examination of its applicability and research implications. The third chapter delves into Deaf studies and the evolution of Deafhood, which hinges on the history and culture of Deaf individuals. This chapter elucidates the distinction between ‘deafness’ as a medical construct and ‘Deafhood’ as a cultural identity, crucial to the understanding of audiovisual accessibility and its intersection with the Deaf community's perspectives. In the fourth chapter, the focus turns to the exploration of film festivals, with a specific emphasis on the crucial role of subtitles in enhancing accessibility, particularly when films are presented in their original languages. The chapter marks a critical point, highlighting the inherent connection between subtitles and the immersive nature of film festivals that aspire to promote inclusivity in the cinematic experience. The emphasis on inclusivity extends to the evolution of film festivals, giving rise to more advanced forms, including accessible film festivals and Deaf film festivals. At the core of the chapter is a thorough examination of the corpus, specifically, the SDH/CC of films spanning the editions from 2020 to 2023 of two highly significant film festivals, namely BFI Flare and the London Film Festival. The corpus serves as the foundation upon which my research unfolds, providing a nuanced understanding of the role subtitles play in film festival contexts. The main chapter, chapter five, thoroughly analyses the technical and linguistic aspects of inclusive subtitling, drawing insights from the Inclusive Subtitling Guidelines - a two version document devised by myself - and offering real-world applications supported by a case study at an Italian film festival and another case study of the short film Pure, with the relevant inclusive subtitles file annexed. In conclusion, the research sets the stage for a comprehensive exploration of inclusive subtitling's role in ensuring accessible and inclusive audiovisual experiences, particularly within film festivals. It underscores the importance of accessibility in the world of audiovisual media and highlights the need for inclusive practices to cater to diverse audiences

A phenomenological study of selected California small business founders\u27 motivational paradigms

Organizational vision has become an increasingly important tool in many professions. A founder\u27s vision may permeate an organization\u27s culture and have a lasting impact on how the organization is later run. Organizational vision is a tool that helps leaders create alignment within their organizations and provides flexibility for adaptation to the ever-changing marketplace. In order to facilitate this alignment, leaders often use various motivational techniques. Ideally, the motivational technique the leader selects best motivates his or her employees to act in alignment with the vision. How effective the founder is in selecting the most appropriate motivational technique may be contingent upon his or her understanding of differing paradigms and willingness to explore different incentives and dispositions with their employees. Sowell (1995) provides a conceptual framework in his book The Vision of the Anointed that may be useful for evaluating different motivational paradigms. Sowell (1995) suggests that distinctions between a constrained and an unconstrained paradigm are based on one\u27s underlying belief system. Those who subscribe to a constrained paradigm look to history to explain possibilities for the future, which implies a smaller set of options than an unconstrained paradigm. A leader who subscribes to a constrained paradigm would tend to use incentives or extrinsic rewards to motivate his or her employees. Those who subscribe to an unconstrained paradigm look to the possibilities of what the future may hold and therefore provide a larger set of options than a constrained paradigm. A leader who subscribes to an unconstrained paradigm would tend to use dispositions or intrinsic rewards to motivate employees. Based on Sowell\u27s (1995) conceptual framework, this study explored 11 California small business founders\u27 motivational paradigms reflecting either a constrained or unconstrained paradigm. A semi-structured interview format was employed to discover the founders\u27 underlying paradigm (constrained or unconstrained). More specifically, this study explored how selected California small business founders described motivating their employees with similar and differing paradigms. No prior studies known to the researcher have applied Sowell\u27s criteria for evaluating paradigms to small business founders\u27 motivation

Multiliteracies meaning-making: How four boys’ video gaming experiences influence their cultural knowledge—Two ethnographic cases

Scholars have acknowledged the potential contribution of video gaming to complex forms of learning, identifying links between gaming and engagement, experiential learning spaces, problem-solving, strategies, transliteracy reflectivity, critical literacy, and metacognitive thinking. Despite this movement toward the inclusion of video gaming in literacy teaching, concerns about certain risks raised by scholars have slowed the adoption of using video games to foster learning. Using a multiliteracies lens, this multi-case study examined the experiences of four boys engaged with video gaming in two different contexts: a community centre and an after-school video club. By drawing on Feminist Post-Structural Theory, Vygotskian, and video gaming technology, I have gained an understanding of the nature of boys’ behavior and learning in social settings while they engage in video game play. Studying the ways in which boys make meanings through multimodal ways of learning can offer insights into strategies that can potentially reinvent traditional literacy pedagogical boundaries and establish new ways and practices for building knowledge. These ethnographic cases, along with their naturalistic aspects, strengthened the authenticity of the social-contextual-cultural experiences of the four, adolescent-aged boys and allowed an understanding of their everyday experiences. Interpretations of the cultural meanings made by each of the boys, based on their individual unique experiences engaging with video games, can provide readers with insights into how to approach adolescent aged boys’ literacy development. This study describes how these four boys developed their multimodal ways of learning by engaging with visual perspectives of video games. My methodological approach documented what boys are saying, as much as possible, which is currently understudied in the literature surrounding boys and their video gaming practices. There were a number of findings emanating from this study, including the following: (i) boys use their video gaming practices for meaning-making and collaborative efforts in order to gain an understanding of several knowledge processes (such as decision-making, predicting, analyzing, strategizing, etc.), (ii) boys extend and apply their cultural knowledge as creative innovators, producing and publishing YouTube instructional videos for video game players and designing video games for a history project, (iii) boys demonstrate peer mentoring through storytelling, face-to-face interactions or in their online community of practice, (iv) boys make meanings using metacognitive literacy skills in a variety of ways, and (v) boys focus on cultural preservation and narrative storytelling. While acknowledging concerns related to video gaming, such as negative identity construction, violence, distraction, and time commitment for integration, this study seeks to contribute to the scholarly discussion about the use of video games in classrooms by explicitly considering the ways in which gaming may support boys’ meaning-making and cultural knowledge. Keywords Available designs, boys, community of practice, cultural meaning-making systems, literacy, multiliteracies, multimodal meanings, video gamin

The Representation of Gender in Contemporary Chinese Television Advertising: An Analysis of Content, Meaning, and Production

This thesis examines how gender is portrayed in Chinese television commercials and how these representations reflect the social and cultural contexts of their production and the institutional practices of advertising production personnel. To date, while there have been a plethora of studies on gender representation in advertising in western contexts only limited attention has been given to Chinese advertising portrayals of gender. This study, therefore, explores particular ways in which femininity and masculinity are discursively constructed, and how this process, in turn, contributes to reinforcing and/or challenging certain gender ideologies, in particular those found in Chinese Confucian culture. The study is unique in its approach to Chinese television advertising in that it combines methods from textual analysis (quantitative content analysis, semiotic analysis and critical discourse analysis) and empirical research (interview). A sample of 679 television commercials was collected and analysed in this investigation. Content analysis was initially applied to identify recurrent patterns and characteristics of gender representation which, in turn, formed the basis for in-depth semiotic and discourse analysis. Specific signs, images, codes, discourses and myths were subsequently discussed. The study also included semi-structured interviews with 26 Chinese advertising personnel in order to understand their multiple dispositions toward gender and their actual experiences of depicting female and male characters in the creative process. Several main findings emerged from this study. The portrayal of gender in Chinese television commercials is complex because it embodies a series of simultaneously conflicting and complementary discourses on what constitute femininity and masculinity. The results of the content analysis revealed that the representation of gender in this study’s sample still remains stereotypical in terms of the different distribution of the sexes across product category, role, dress, age, credibility and voice-over. By focusing on the constructs of gender in domestic, occupational and recreational contexts, the use of semiotic and discourse analysis revealed that Chinese television advertising not only portrays women and men in line with the significant aspects embedded in both Chinese and western patriarchal traditions, but is also constitutive of cultural shifts in gender ideologies through highlighting modern (western) values. In addition, the interview findings yielded support for the conclusions of textual analysis, demonstrating that the process of advertising production is significantly influenced by traditional and modern gender values, the restriction of advertising regulations, client expectations, and the professionals’ divergent perceptions of gender and their assumptions about the audience

Catalog Denison University 2015-2016

Denison University Course 2015-2016https://digitalcommons.denison.edu/denisoncatalogs/1187/thumbnail.jp

Catalog Denison University 2016-2017

Denison University Course 2016-2017https://digitalcommons.denison.edu/denisoncatalogs/1188/thumbnail.jp

Suffolk University Academic Catalog, College of Arts and Sciences and Sawyer Business School, 2012-2013

This catalog contains information for both the undergraduate and graduate programs. The catalog is a pdf version of the Suffolk website, and the pages are not in numerical order. In order to navigate the program descriptions and degree requirements, please use the menu links on the left side of each page. To view the course descriptions, refer to the A-Z list of courses starting on page 1,220 (these are also included here as separate pdf files with lists of CAS and SBS courses). You can also search for a particular course or program by clicking ctrl+f and typing in the course number or name. Please contact the Archives if you need assistance navigating this catalog or finding information on degree requirements or course descriptions.https://dc.suffolk.edu/cassbs-catalogs/1165/thumbnail.jp